Joiner s floor-clamp



(No Model.)

A. M. WHITE. JOINBRS FLOOR CLAMP. I No. 589,518. Patented Sept. 7, 1897.

as applied for use.

UNITED STATES PATENT Ger-rice,

ABLE M. \Vlllll l, OF TILMON, TEXAS.

JOINERS FLOOR-CLAM P.

' SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Iatent No. 589,518, dated September 7, 1897.

Application filed December M, 1896.

To alt whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ABLE-M. \VHITE, a citizen of the'United States, residing at lilinon, in the county of Caldwell and State of Texas, have invented anew and useful Improvement in Joiners Floor-Clamps, of which the following is a specification.

Ihave produced an improved device for use by j oiners in setting iongue-and-groove floor and ceiling boards, whereby the boards are forced in close joining and hold while being nailed to the joists. In the work the board is laid upon the joists in position for joining and a clamp or jack block carried by a pair of tongs, which are gripped to the joist, is forced against the edge of the board to drive and join it with the board previously laid and nailed. In the driving function of the clamp or jack block and while nailing the board the tongs are firmly held in position upon the joist by a latch-bar, holding the tongs closed, and by a take-hold brace adapted to bite into the joist in forcing up the clamp-block to hold the board while it is being nailed.

The particular matters of in y improvement are the pivoting of the take-hold brace upon the latch-bar, whereby the resistance upon the take-hold brace serves to safely hold the latch in engagement with the gripped tongs, the mounting of the clamp or bearing block upon a knuckle jointed adjustable arm, whereby the bearing-block is maintained in an extended position in relation to the tongs to facilitate its engagement with the flooring or ceiling board, and in the provision for ad j usting or reversing the clamp-bl0ck in its relation to the tongs. In these particulars the improvements will be set out in the claims.

The drawings herewith illustrate these improvements and show inFigui-e 1 the device Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the same, and Fig. 3 shows the beveled recess in the clamping-block to facilitate the driving of the nail.

The tongs are formed with claws adapted to embrace and clamp the j oist,and the tongs are pivoted together by a short bar 1, to which the cla1np-block arm 2 is pivoted, so that the clamping-block '3 has a mounting of three pivotally-acting joints. The tongs are so cured upon the pivot-bearing i of the bar 1 by a nut 5, which allows said bar to be turned while forcing up and nailing the board.

Serial No- 615,681. (1c1ncCc or reversed for ceiling-work and secured when set. To the other end of the pivot-bar the clamp-arm is attached by a vertically'ilexing pivot-joint (3, while the clamping-block is attached to said arm by a horizontally-flexing pivot-joint 7.

The acting edge of the clamp-block has a groove 8, adapted to receive the tongue of the board, while the opposite edge of the clampblock has a recess or socket within which its carryingarm is pivoted, so that the clampblock is free to turn horizontally upon said pivot-joint 7 within certain limits to give it a true bearing upon the edge of the board.

Mediately of the grooved edge of the clampblock it has a recess 8, within which the nail is placed in driving it into the edge of the board. This gives the advantage of nailing the board at a point in direct line with the clamping force.

The joiner in placing and gripping the tongs upon the joist brings the clamp-block thereon and forces its grooved edge against the edge of the board, and this action brings the take-hold brace 9 in position piercing the top of the joist to support and brace the tongs In this supporting function of the brace it iscimportant that the latch 10, which holds the tongs gripped to the joist, should be made secure, and for this purpose'l mount the brace so as to be :free to swing upon the latchbar between the handles of the tongs, and I make the latch-bar, which is pivoted to one of the handles, with ratchet-teeth 11 on the upper edge, so as to engage a keeper 12 on the other handle, whereby the holding function of the brace in following up the forcing action of the tongs will exert an upward force upon the latch-bar to hold it in secure engage ment with its keeper while forcing up and nailing the board.

As it is important that the clamp -block should beheld in position to rest and slide upon the joist in using the device, the pivotjoint 6 is a knuckle-joint, which prevents the clamp-block from hanging down whetherfor flooring or for ceiling work, while the joint 7 gives it freedom for a limited horizontal adj ustnient in the line of the tongue.

I prefer to make the clamp-block of two plates riveted together for greater conven ience in forming the pivoting-recess within its edge, and I prefer to bevel the upper plate part at the recess 8 to facilitate the placing and driving of the nail obliquely, as in Fig. 3.

I elaim- 1. The combination, in a joiners floorclamp, apair of gripping-tongs and a clampbloek, an adjustable and reversible arm eonneeting the tongs and clamp-block and hav ing the intermediate kn uekle-j oint 6 whereby to maintain the elamp bloek in an extended relation to the tongs and to reverse its position thereon to facilitate applying; the device to the flooring or ceiling board. I i

Ina joiners floor-clamp, the combination of a pair of gripping-tongs, and a clamp or hearing block, a connecting-arm-therefor sorew-nutted to the tongs, pivot-j ointed to the bearing-block and knuckle-jointed between the tongs and the bearing-block, in the Way and for the purpose stated. i

3. The oombination, in a joiners floorelamp, of the grippingmongs, a latch-bar for securing their handles when grippethand a driving clamp-block for the board, with a take-hold brace mounted to swing freely upon the latch-bar, whereby the resistance upon the brace in driving and holding the clamp block, serves to securely hold the latch in looking relation to the tongs.

at. In a joiners fioor-ela1np, the combination with the gripping-tongs, of a clamp-block for the board mounted upon said tongs by a knueklejointed arm by which the clampblook may also be reversed in position, a pivotal connection of said arm with the tongs, and means for clamping said arm when set.

ABLE M. \V-HITE; \Vitn esses I J. W. REED,

J. M. WHITE. 

